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Farm & Ranch Happenings

published: June 12th 2009
by: Harvey Buehring

“ Mid-May Rains Gradually Making Way Into Coast Bend”
    Hallelujah! Rain is finally making its way into deep South Texas.   Satur-day, May 16th  late afternoon thunderstorms  bless-ed much of the drought-parched ranch and farmland west of Corpus Christi with the largest rainfall event in almost nine months.  On the following Saturday another line of thunderstorms produced additional rains.
    Although these rain events have yet to be of drought-busting magnitude,  their occurrence is giving hope that a favorable change in the weather pattern has finally arrived.  Rainfall amounts have varied widely. Some locations receiving as much as 2 1/2” - 3 1/2”  in western portions of the region.  Lower rainfall amounts of 1/4"  to 3/4 “ were typical for  areas east of HWY 77. The Corpus Christi International Air-port, where the National Weather Service’s gauge is located, continues to re-ceive lower rainfall amounts than other reliable area recording sites during these May rainfall events.
        Almost everyone in the area got at least some precipitation on the last  two Saturdays in May.  The strong daytime winds ap-pear to be subsiding which has improved rain chances as well.   Another good sign that weather patterns are changing for the better is  getting 1 1/2 or more rainfall out of a prediction for 20% chance of scattered showers”.
    The lower portion of Texas continues to be in the grips of a major drought. It has progressively intensified since last September.  That fact may be news to many in parts of the state where beneficial rains arrived in March.  During April, the folks at the National Weather Service moved the southern part of the state from the “severe” to the “extreme drought” rating.  “Extreme” is the most serious drought category on their scale.   Since the majority of the lower Coastal Bend counties were 8” to 12” below  normal  rainfall, no one involved in agriculture would argue that conditions were about as dry as dry could get.      Row crop farmers have had little to no rainfall since last season’s crop was harvested. The result is nothing but extremely dry soil and impossible growing  conditions.   With no rains to provide needed moisture to sprout the seeds, stands failed to be established by the May deadline for crop insurance in the Coastal Bend area.
     In Nueces County, early reports indicated  crop in-surance adjusters had declared 103,000 acres of cotton as a total loss.  Less than 20,000 acres of cotton remain in that county.  Approximately 62% of that county’s dryland corn crop has also failed due to drought.  Estimates indicate that as much a 50% of the 165,000 acres of sorghum planted in that county may also become a total loss.
    Neighboring San Patri-cio County is also expected to  have just over 100,000 acres cotton that have been declared a total lost.   Loss-es of cotton acreage in Kleberg and Jim Wells Counties have also been extensive, bringing projected losses for the region into the 240,000 to 250,000 acre range.   These losses have  serious impact on the re-gion’s gin, grain elevators, cotton warehouses, oil mill, farm supply dealers, trucking firms and other infrastructure essential to the local agricultural industry.
    Since drought is a fact of life in Texas and agricultural production is highly dependent on rainfall. Therefore, news of the recent application by Mon-santo for U.S.D.A. and EPA regulatory approval for testing the world’s first drought-tolerant biotech corn variety has created a great deal of excitement.   If all goes well with testing, the Monsanto Company hopes to market to farmers regionally adapted corn hybrids containing the drought tolerant / water efficiency gene in year 2012.   Corn varieties with this drought tolerance gene could gain quick acceptance  since experts indicate that approximately 85% of the annual U.S. corn crop experiences some degree of drought stress that limits production. 
    The advent of more drought tolerant corn varieties may have the livestock feeding industry as the largest indirect beneficiary.  If this new  technology results in increased per acre yields from lower rainfall growing areas and less market volatility when dry conditions occur across the corn belt, feeders could have greater control over future feed cost escalations.    
    Now if someone could develop a nutritious grass that would thrive without soil moisture, the cow-calf producers might be able to maintain their cattle herds during these droughts. Cattle feeding operations would be assured of a constant supply of  feeder cattle to replenish the production stream.   If that miracle came true, I wonder what new calamity might replace the hardships that drought has triditionally inflicted on ranchers.   After all, in agriculture there is always something to worry about!